Day 14 – Gerasa: Go Away Jesus

“When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs. And they began to beg Jesus to depart from the region. (Mark 5:15-17)

The story in Mark shows the greatest case of demon possession in the Bible. It is also one of the most amazing miracles Jesus ever performed. In His visit to Gerasa, Jesus has an encounter with a demon filled man.

After Jesus cast out the demons, He permitted them to enter the hogs who committed suicide by running down a cliff and into the sea. Meanwhile the man sat at the feet of Jesus, calm, clothed, and clothed in his right mind. The response of the townspeople is telling: “They were afraid” (v. 15). So, they begged Jesus to leave their region. Jesus left and as far as we know, He never returned.

Think about just for a moment. After the greatest encounter with demons and deity had taken place, the townspeople asked Him to leave.

There is no way the townspeople could deny that the man who was once full of demons had been miraculously healed. Evidently the pigs mattered more than the man. However, to Jesus the man mattered more than the pigs. The townspeople could not handle the transformation. Instead of rejoicing, they were afraid. Afraid of what? Of the man? Possibly. Of Jesus? Surely not. But they are definitely afraid! They were afraid of anyone with that kind of power. They were afraid of what He would do next. C. S. Lewis said, if I may paraphrase him, Jesus is not safe, but He is good. And He does not always do what we expect Him to do, but He what does is always for the best.

He was bad for the economy. They saw the miracle and asked Jesus to leave because He was bad for business. And they were right! When Jesus comes into your life, it will never be business as usual again.

How many of us have prayed this – Lord save me but just not today! You are not the first to pray this prayer (Augustine) and you will not be the last.

Lord Jesus, never allow me to be afraid of Your power to change me from the inside out even when it makes me uncomfortable! Amen.